Vikings Plan Two-Year Stay at TCF

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Formo said:
You have an inside track to the Wilf's mind? Didn't know that.

Every roofless endeavor the Vikings wanted would have costed $1billion. Especially the Arden Hills bit (think of the cleanup/road work involved with it). The state/Ramsey County didn't want it there, so it didn't fly. MPLS, the State, and the Vikings got what they wanted with many sacrifices.

The Wilf's wanted something like the New Meadowlands MetLife stadium. Guess how much that cost to build? $1.6 billion.
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Well if the Wilfs wanted something like MetLife stadium they were flatly lying when they said they wanted something that wasn't 'over the top' and 'Minnesotan' (aka a little more humble). Heinz Field cost $280M to build ($369 in today's dollars), Gillette Stadium cost $325M ($420 in today's dollars). CenturyLink Field was $430M ($556 in 2012). All of these stadiums have done extremely well for their teams from a fan and revenue perspective (and Pittsburgh and the Patriots have won multiple Superbowls). Land and labor are cheaper here, but I was also factoring in for a stadium with a few more bells and whistles with my $500M number. As a taxpayer, I would have been far more comfortable with the Wilfs spending $500M on their own stadium and the state/county spending $100M (vs $500) on the infrastructure around it and site cleanup (even if that location would have been a terrible choice for fans and the environment with acres of surface parking).

I'm confused how you can claim that any roofless endeavor would be $1B when the final roofed design tallied up to $1B. I'm also curious what sacrifices ay party involved had to make. For the Vikings the only thing I can think of is the 1.5-2 years they'll spend at the U due to the location being on the Dome site. But what other sacrifice did they, the city, or the state have to make (well, except for the massive subsidy the public is giving them in place of all the other things it could be spent on over the next 30 years).

I'm not claiming to have an inside track in his mind. Just stating the obvious facts of total cost and the Wilf's input and what they could have done.
 

Well, here's the latest.

Sid this morning talking to Lester Bagely:

I'm glad Mortenson got the bid to build new stadium. When company X built the Excel(might have referred to Mauricci) they covered the cost of an escalator as part of their donation. With Mortenson being a local company they do not have to make the $12.5 million, so as part of their donation they will include a retractable roof. I will be calling (the Mortenson guy) this week.

Okay Sid.
 

Norwood should take all the revenues from the Vikings rent/other payments and make a separate football fund to help the program.

Put some aside for small yearly improvements that will make the quality of life for the players/coaches/staff better.

If small incremental upgrades are made the athletic department could stretch that $6 million or so for a long time.
 

With changes coming to TCF because of the Vikings, what do you think of re-naming the gates from A-E to something that incorporates Gopher history...I was thinking along the Twins where the gate numbers are former players, but something like the below:

Bruce Smith Gate
Bronko Nagurski Gate
Sandy Stephens Gate
Paul Giel Gate
Tyrone Carter Gate
 

SJUgopher said:
With changes coming to TCF because of the Vikings, what do you think of re-naming the gates from A-E to something that incorporates Gopher history...I was thinking along the Twins where the gate numbers are former players, but something like the below:

Bruce Smith Gate
Bronko Nagurski Gate
Sandy Stephens Gate
Paul Giel Gate
Tyrone Carter Gate
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Adding confusion to the gates is a bad idea, it's still a bad idea at Target Field. Keep it simple.
 



Regarding logos on the turf, I would guess that they go with painted logos and end zones like they do at Ford Field and the turf in Reliant Stadium that is used for non-NFL games.

It may not look as nice as logos sewn into the turf.
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Just out of curiosity, could a 200 ft hockey rink fit in the east end of the stadium perpendicular to the field? If so, it would be great to ensure that the temporary seats the Vikings purchase for the west end zone could be moved to the field for hockey. Soldier field layout looks like crap. Seats too far away.
 

DakotaKid said:
Regarding logos on the turf, I would guess that they go with painted logos and end zones like they do at Ford Field and the turf in Reliant Stadium that is used for non-NFL games.

It may not look as nice as logos sewn into the turf.
punch_.0_standard_352.0.gif
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Well since TCF field is sewn in, not painted on, I find it highly unlikely. The U will want to maintain the look they presently have.

If they replace the turf again after the Vikings leave, then maybe. Hash marks would be the exception.
 



DakotaKid said:
Regarding logos on the turf, I would guess that they go with painted logos and end zones like they do at Ford Field and the turf in Reliant Stadium that is used for non-NFL games.

It may not look as nice as logos sewn into the turf.
punch_.0_standard_352.0.gif
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There is no way the Vikings play two seasons at the Gopher's Stadium without their logo on the field.
 

Go4Broke said:
There is no way the Vikings play two seasons at the Gopher's Stadium without their logo on the field.
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So the Vikings are going to pay to play the field turf twice instead of once? I don't see that happening.
 

I can't see any way the U's logo isn't right there at midfield for Vikings games. It wouldn't look good at all of they tried to paint over it.
 

nokomismod said:
I'm excited for the upgrades to TCF, and really dissapointed the new Vikings stadium will have a roof, but I think I'm in the minority on that.

Do you all wish the 3,000 seats being added to the bank were permanent? What if this Gopher team improves like we hope it does and there is a lot more demand in 2014 and 2015?!
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The open end looks really nice..temp seating will look like crap for 2 years...I hope they don't come in and really mess up TCF.
 




I actually think putting the Viking Logo at midfield(OF THE GOPHER STADIUM) would be a bad PR move for the Vikings.
 

Parski1 said:
The logo at the 50 is sticked it. It's not like they can go scrub it off.
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If I remember correctly when they redid Soldier field in Chicago, the bears played in Champagne with the Illini "I" at midfield, also when the Seahawks played at the university of Washington stadium the "W" was at midfield too.

The Dome was made to be interchangeable so they changed logos for each team.

I doubt they will do that at TCF if they have to change it back.

Sent from my PLAYSTATION PHONE using tapatalk
 

Dilemina said:
If I remember correctly when they redid Soldier field in Chicago, the bears played in Champagne with the Illini "I" at midfield, also when the Seahawks played at the university of Washington stadium the "W" was at midfield too.
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The first game after the Metrodome roof collapsed they played in Detroit. They painted the Vikings logo over the Lions logo. It looked like crap, you could still see the Lions logo through the paint. The M would be harder to cover up, it's hard to paint over dark paint.
 

westcoastgopher11 said:
While I generally agree that Zygi and Co. should be flexible on this stuff, I would have preferred they done something with Target Field to at least partially cover it or have a retractable feature to make it usable earlier in the year.

The Pohlads and everyone else involved knew that baseball played in February and March can be tough here. And I'm pretty frustrated that ultimately the $100 million dollar price tag is what killed it, considering the good having a retractable roof could have had on Minnesota's baseball community as a whole.

Being able to have winter league ball, Twins Fest, high school tournaments and the like year round would have been great for the state. High schools and youth level ball wouldn't have to shell out thousands of dollars per team, per year to go to Florida or Arizona to train.

And as "nice" as the new Vikings stadium will be, watching a baseball game there wouldn't be able to compare to watching one at Target Field even with a canopy covering.
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With all due respect WestCoastGopher, I couldn't disagree more. Target field and the Bank are both fantastic venues and neither would be as good if there was a retractable roof. The retractable roof stadiums like Milwaukee no longer feel like outdoor stadiums to me.
 

OddStack said:
Wrong. High schools start in the middle of March and don't play games until April. High schools mainly play in the Metrodome for the experience factor.
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Wrong about what? I didnt' intend that to mean that high schools start in February. As an MSHSL umpire, I understand when they start. See The Gophers and other college teams from the same sentence. Geez...
 

nokomismod said:
With all due respect WestCoastGopher, I couldn't disagree more. Target field and the Bank are both fantastic venues and neither would be as good if there was a retractable roof. The retractable roof stadiums like Milwaukee no longer feel like outdoor stadiums to me.
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Agreed. Miller Park is actually one of the least enjoyable ball parks I have ever been in (out of 24 current and former MLB parks). Brewer fans like to tout all its amenities, but it feels like watching a miniature baseball game inside a tin can.
 

RodentRampage said:
The first game after the Metrodome roof collapsed they played in Detroit. They painted the Vikings logo over the Lions logo. It looked like crap, you could still see the Lions logo through the paint. The M would be harder to cover up, it's hard to paint over dark paint.
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And why would you want to paint over a field that was not meant to be painted?
 

nokomismod said:
With all due respect WestCoastGopher, I couldn't disagree more. Target field and the Bank are both fantastic venues and neither would be as good if there was a retractable roof. The retractable roof stadiums like Milwaukee no longer feel like outdoor stadiums to me.
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year of the gopher said:
Agreed. Miller Park is actually one of the least enjoyable ball parks I have ever been in (out of 24 current and former MLB parks). Brewer fans like to tout all its amenities, but it feels like watching a miniature baseball game inside a tin can.
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Someone once described the architecture of Metropolitan Sadium as 'Early Erector Set'.

Most of these rectracable stadiums I would describe as 'Early Erector Set on Steroids'.

UGLY!
 

MNGoldenGophers1 said:
It's too bad that Zig will be allowed into TCF. The S.O.B. isn't cooperating with amateur baseball including the Gophers. He's also jacking around the County with the roads.

The "People's Stadium" my azz. It's Zig's "Rich Man's Playground!"
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I would hope they don't accomodate amateur baseball, the design and construction of a billion dollor football stadium should have nothing to do with baseball, build a small dome that accomodates a thousand spectators if that is desired, oh yea it would never get public funding at any cost because no one would give a darn about it and certainly wouldn't want their tax dollars spent on it.
 

nokomismod said:
With all due respect WestCoastGopher, I couldn't disagree more. Target field and the Bank are both fantastic venues and neither would be as good if there was a retractable roof. The retractable roof stadiums like Milwaukee no longer feel like outdoor stadiums to me.
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I agree in some respects, I think the quality of the overall venue from a fan perspective might be lower. I was coming from a multi-use perspective though.

It would've been better to have a "very good" indoor/retractable roof ballpark instead of an "excellent outdoor" one just for the sake of other uses. Target Field is spectacular during the summer, but it just strikes me as odd that arguably the coldest/winteriest climate in MLB outside of Toronto went with a completely outdoor stadium. I mean Seattle, Arizona, Houston, Toronto, Miami all have retractable roof stadiums so its hardly a rare thing.

I know the Pohlads are cheap and wanted to put as little cash into Target Field as possible, but the debate about youth baseball etc should have been had back when Target Field was being built. Having a MLB quality indoor facility for the winter months could've been a huge boon for baseball in the state, that's all I'm saying.
 

SJUgopher said:
With changes coming to TCF because of the Vikings, what do you think of re-naming the gates from A-E to something that incorporates Gopher history...I was thinking along the Twins where the gate numbers are former players, but something like the below:

Bruce Smith Gate
Bronko Nagurski Gate
Sandy Stephens Gate
Paul Giel Gate
Tyrone Carter Gate
Click to expand...

Are you the same guy that named the streets in St. Paul?
 


This thread is a big fail despite an interesting original post. I wish we could have a "do over" that discussed the potential changes, temporary and forever, to our favorite football stadium. Some of these things can be found here, if you are willing to read through mountains of opinion on foul lines and amature baseball.

I am very interested to see how this shacking up relationship progresses.

1. I predict the temporary seating added to the west end zone ends up looking very nice, especially when the stadium is full. I would think they will do a better job of making the seats look good than stringing up a bunch of boards, planks, and pipe. I also think it would be a good promotional opportunity for the U to play with (free tickets to youth football teams, etc.) in those new seats.
2. If the Vikings are going to be paying to add the capability of warming the field (which will require new turf to be added), it will be very interesting to see if they put in generic turf that can be painted, or if the U is smart enough to demand the same type of turf design, block M sewn in, etc. To me, this is a concern and I hope the U isn't yellow bellied enough to get stuck with the need to paint their own logos on their own field every week for years to come.
3. Since beer sales have been a success so far and nobody has got naked and streaked across the field due to their TCF Bank stadium booze intake, I wonder if the two year arrival of the Vikings will be enough to get the beer out of the gardens and into concession stands outside of the student section. It will be interesting to see if the Vikings' arrival further influences TCF beer sales for Gopher games.
4. How are they repackaging loge boxes and suites for Vikings suite owners?
5. Will the hosting of the Vikings be a good opportunity to finally get some hockey done in TCF? I'm assuming since the plumbing will still be flowing and the stadium will not be winterized well into January, it would make hosting a winter classic or hockey day in MN less expensive than it would be to pull it out of winterization after a college football season.
6. I wonder how they are going to handle Viking vs Gopher season ticket holders when it comes to the ability to order up seat backs in the bench areas. Viking fans just plain out of luck and have to seatbacks unless their Gopher counterpart has ordered them?
 


year of the gopher said:
Agreed. Miller Park is actually one of the least enjoyable ball parks I have ever been in (out of 24 current and former MLB parks). Brewer fans like to tout all its amenities, but it feels like watching a miniature baseball game inside a tin can.
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Completely disagree.. I found both my experiences at Miller Park fun, with a great atmosphere. And both times I was there rooting hard against the Brewers (they won both times too). Sure, it's really an 'indoor' ball park, but it's a unique structure with a very fun and interactive atmosphere.
 


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